Newton Abbot in Old Pictures: The Globe Hotel in 1981

Of the two main hotels in the town the Globe was always regarded to be the best; the other – the Queens Hotel opposite the railway station – was also good but not quite up to the standard of the Globe. I remember the ballroom being quite impressive.

Much of the hotel now forms part of Austin’s Department Store. As you can see if you look closely at the photo the ground floor was a restaurant and bar (with red velvet curtains), looking directly onto the Clock Tower. I always thought that it might have been a good idea for Austin’s to relocate their café here, especially now that the area outside is car-free. Instead, the five ground floor windows you can see are covered over, and the other side of them is the cookware department.

The hotel is on the junction of Courtenay Street and Bank Street, both part of the extensive – and some said at the time confusing – one-way system.

Below is an extract from the detailed Ordnance Survey Town Map of Newton Abbot in 1888. The Clock Tower – which is actually St.Leonard’s Tower – is at the bottom left and labelled as St.Leonard’s Chapel (remains of). The Globe Hotel was a substantial building even then and, as you can see, a ground floor café in present-day Austins would be an excellent place for a coffee and Devon scone!